A tremendous project from the scene in Uruguay at the start of the 70s – a magical moment of musical creation, put together by the legendary Eduardo Mateo and some of the key artists of his generation! As with Mateo's music, there's an approach here that's both sophisticated and down to earth at the same time – some qualities that resonate strongly with the best Brazilian work of the time, but which have that special bent that was taking place amidst the struggles that were facing Uruguay at this difficult time in their history. Instrumentation is a great blend of acoustic and electric elements, and the shifting voices really help keep things interesting – on titles that include "Pippo" by Urbano & El Kinto, "Principe Azul" by Mateo & El Kinto, "Si Te Vas De Mi Pueblo" by Mateo & Reinaldo, "Mejor Me Voy" by Diane Denoir & Mateo, "Musicasion III" by Urbano, "Muy Lejos Te Vas" by El Kinto, "Sueno De Una Noche De Mermelada" by Horacio, and "Margaritas Rojas" by Mateo, Federico, & Figares. 2LP version features new mastering – and a massive 18 tracks from the same generation, most unreleased! LP, Vinyl record album

A second mighty batch of rare work from points south – the kind of tunes we'd never have tracked down on our own, making us even more grateful for a set like this! As before, the music's a blend of obscure African tunes and other bits picked from the Caribbean – the latter of which represents a strongly untapped source of funk from the 70s, finally getting its due in recent years! There's a strong influence on most numbers from American funky 45s – heavy drums, riffing guitars, and blasting horns – but all put together with a slightly different approach, especially on the bottom – which makes for more than enough interesting grooves throughout the set. Titles include "Dig It Babe" by Jojo L'Explosif, "Rising" by WJC & Roots Trunks & Branches, "Dou Dagbe We" by Black Santiago, "Almamy" by Super Tentemba Jazz, "Rhythm On Rhythm" by Sookie, "Joe" by Marius, "Play Up Play Up" by Roland Louis Orchestra, "Let's Stay Up Vickings" by Les Vickings, and "Wish Upon Love" by Cool Creation. LP, Vinyl record album

A really different setting for the saxophone of Afro Funk legend Femi Kuti – as instead of working with a large group, he just blows here alongside the keyboard creations of Robert Hood – in a mode that makes for a really wonderful album all the way through! The tracks are each just titled "Variations" – and Femi's performance definitely seems improvised throughout, and set to these keyboard heavy grooves created by Hood – who also delivers lots of great keyboard solos too! There's a lot more jazz here than you'd expect on a Femi Kuti album – yet the set also nods to some Afro-styled grooves at points too – a real delight over the course of the eight tracks on the set. (New Grooves, Global Grooves) LP, Vinyl record album